Suffolk Lavender by Julie Masse for Shay & Blue 2013

I hear a lot about scents being ‘office friendly’; meaning the scent is likely to receive a warmer reception to a wider range of people than others. I am sure you have a list of scents you consider safe to wear at any given event or location. I have given a substantial deal of thought to what I deem safe to wear to work, and it has taken a great deal of trial and error.

I am a truck mechanic and what I wear has to fit a number of criteria. I will not wear a strongly feminine scent, as a lot of our customers and my co-workers are male and I am not too keen to leave a lingering, smouldering scent in the cabin of a truck. My scent also has to rise above the strong environmental scents competing for my attention, yet it has to be markedly different so to not prevent me from smelling dangerous odours, such as LPG leaks and welding fires.

I found the very scent that has become my work daily: Shay & Blue’s Suffolk Lavender. I am particularly partial to lavender that plays the starring role, but isn’t a soliflor. I find the lavender in Suffolk Lavender isn’t sleep inducing, but helps to ground and calm me, while being inherently interesting.

Suffolk Lavender by Julie Masse for Shay & Blue 2013

Finding my ideal work scent

This opens with a salty lavender. This very linear, moderate projection stays for a good hour. The lavender is quite dry, but full bodied and slightly creamy. I spray it on my torso, because with body heat, I get an oomph of scent that wafts up in a way I don’t get from wrist sprays alone. I have not tried this during summer, but I am guessing from its response to heat, it will be adaptable to the temperature without losing its character.

After about two hours, Suffolk Lavender slowly becomes a skin scent, but the deeper incense notes make their appearance. Like a song with moderate volume that has deep, booming base notes that make the song seem louder than the volume indicates, this scent does the same with the incense. So, it isn’t until lunch time, about 5-6 hours later, that I need to think of reapplying.

What makes Suffolk Lavender noteworthy, for me at least, is while it uses quite dark and deep notes, the overall composition has the trademark Shay & Blue light handedness. The scent transitions so gently from salty lavender to a mild incense creamy lavender and then tails off to a faintly woody wheat bag type lavender.

I do not get any of the fruit or sweetness this is purported to have. It tends to sit with more pronounced lavender on my eldest son, and heads straight to the incense notes after ten minutes. I love the fact Suffolk Lavender is completely unisex. I can pack this away on trips and know a single bottle will suffice.

David Jones Australia has a limited Shay & Blue range.Shay & Blue ships to almost the entire world, not ANZ though

What is your work environment like? And what factors guide your scent choices?

Oh Kate, I think you should become a writer! Love reading your posts – always insightful and thoughtful. While I wasn’t always a lavender fan, Guerlain’s Mon has amended my views. I’ll have to check this one out too 🙂

Just be warned that Shay & Blue’s Suffolk Lavender does lean to the dry side and hasn’t the sweetness of MG. But, MG might just be your gateway….! If you find other lavenders you really like, let me know. I love to see others open up their scent horizons.

Here in Sweden it is considered impolite to wear strong scents at work. If you have a doctors appointment or one at the dentist, you get a standard letter asking you to refrain from using scents. Probably because there are many people that are allergic here. Anyway, I comply or try to comply. No scents with big sillage and preferably non offensive ones and apply perfume after the doctors appointment 🇸🇪

Hi Jac! I can only imagine how hard that must be, given your extensive, and exquisitely beautiful, collection. So, if you are out shopping or tunning errands in public, do you wear a scent? How heavy do you go?

You have intrigued me! I’ve never heard of this and gotta try now. I love lavenders: simple, complex, linear or otherwise.
Fortunately, I can wear most scents to office, even on occasion vintage shalimar with a light hand.

Howdy Nemo. Thanks for the kind words. The melon isn’t pronounced at all for me. It imparts no sweetness or fruitiness to my nose. My son doesn’t sense it either. I’m not sure of SL’s I&L, but I can tell you it is louder and bolder than Gris Clair. K xx